A Smile Like Yours
by Erzbet
Summary: Jeff the Killer, by chance of boredom, stumbles across a young girl by the name of Darcy, who's fear and curiosity intrigues both him and his friend Jack. (Not about Slenderman, but it's the closest category I could find.) All revisions are complete and updates have resumed. Chapter 11 will be up by 8-20-14
1. swiggity swag

_(AN) The whole story is getting revised, so bear with me right now. It shouldn't take more than a few weeks, at most. Until then, all future updates are on hold._

* * *

Jack approached the home he'd been watching for several weeks with caution, as usual. He gripped a small cooler in his left hand, and his favorite scalpel in his right.

The sight before him nearly made him drop both of those things. A boy-no older than fifteen, surely-was crouched at the front door, fussing with the lock. Jack put away his scalpel and exchanged it for a knife (just in case), then sauntered up to the boy.

"Having a little bit of trouble with that?" Jack chuckled lightly.

The boy turned around and flattened himself against the door. His appearance was gruesome-even with Jack's limited vision, he could see the boy's obvious burn wounds. His eyes were cold and unblinking, and he had scars that imitated a smile on his cheeks. His hair was long and burnt black, and his white sweatshirt was more blood than fabric. The boy fumbled through his pockets until he produced a knife of his own, and stood there holding it, dumbfounded.

"Who are you?" Jack asked slowly.

"I'm-" The boy stopped,creasing his forehead in confusion. "Why-?"

"I suppose a better question would be to ask what exactly you're planning. If you wanna rob these guys, go for it-just be quiet. I have organs to harvest." Jack stepped forward and knelt beside the lock, pulling out his tools and picking it with ease. He let the door swing open and looked over at the boy again. "I'm Jack, by the way."

"Jeff." The teenager said in reply. Jack led him inside and gestured to their surrounding. "What are you fixing to do? Kill these nice folk?"

Jeff nodded in response.

"Well, by all means, go for it." Jack chuckled. He led the slightly confused boy up the stairs and down a hallway. "Pick a door, any door-well, any door that isn't _my_ door." Jack chuckled, slipping into one of the rooms at the end of the hall.

Jeff watched after the older male, trying to make sense of him. The man who called himself Jack stood a few inches taller than Jeff, and seemed to be a few years older as well. He wore all black, but had a dark blue mask over his face. Everything about him was unsettling, but he had a trustworthy air about him.

Jeffrey forced himself to shrug it off and went into the nearest door to his left. Inside he found a rather girlish room-lots of pink, to say the least. So it was unsurprising that he found a very young girl (no older than eleven, certainly) sleeping soundly in her bed. She had messy red hair and very pale skin, with light freckles visible even in the darkness.

And now that he was here, he had no clue what to do with himself. There were no second thoughts, he had no fleeting moment of empathy-he was just downright _dumbfounded _that he'd made it this far. He crouched down beside her and put his blade into her mouth, then began to dig it into the corner of her lips. Her eyes flew open in an instant and she looked up at him helplessly. She did no screaming; she only whimpered as he carved half a smile into the left side of her cheek.

The door flew open again and Jack stood in the door frame. "The anesthetic wore off-her father's awake." Jack whispered in a panic. The sight of the other man made the little girl finally scream, alerting the now awakened father of their presence. "Jeff! Move!" Jack rushed into the room and grabbed the boy by the arm.

"I'm not finished yet!" Jeff protested, gesturing down at the girl.

"I'm sorry, but you don't have time-"

The man that Jack had stolen a kidney from stumbled into the room with a gun in hand. Even in the pain the man was in, he moved somewhat quickly towards the two boys, demanding to know who they were.

Jeff looked up at him helplessly while Jack tugged on Jeff's bloody sleeve. Jeff protested, insisting that he wasn't done. Jack growled and pushed the boy out of the girl's open window.

The young teenager hit the ground with a thud. Several gunshots rang out, and Jack soon followed. Jack landed inches away from Jeff, almost landing on top of him. "You okay?" Jack grunted, rolling over.

"Shouldn't I be asking _you_?" Jeff asked, confused.

"I'm already dead; a little fall from a window won't kill me again."

Jeff was silent, simply staring at the man for an explanation.

"I'll tell you later-we should get out of here before the cops come." Jack rolled onto his feet and offered a hand to Jeff to help him up. Jeff took it gratefully and dusted himself off, returning his knife to his pocket. "Come on." Jack gestured for Jeff to follow, which he did.

"Where are you staying?" Jeff asked awkwardly, trying to make conversation.

"Northrn side of the suburbs-out by the lake. Other side of these trees. What about you?"

"Nowhere, at the moment."

"Really? Well, then, you can come stay with me." Jack offered, leading Jeff into a forest-like area.

Jeff stopped in his tracks. "Why are you being so...nice?"

Jack shrugged. "You're obviously new at this, so you aren't much of a threat. And you seem...at least somewhat promising." Jack chuckled. "Besides, I could use a roommate."

Jeff considered this for a moment, then continued following the masked man in front of him. "Thanks."


	2. what has my life become

_5 years later_

The young killer didn't normally investigate screams of panic. If he took the time to scope out the scene everytime he heard them, he'd never have time to breathe.

Still, the muffled cry caught his attention. It was a bit too...familiar for his liking. The sound came from an alleyway a block or so from him, so he withdrew his knife from his belt and quickened his pace to find it. He peered into the dark passage cautiously, finding a scene that was not so unusual: a young girl was being pinned to the side of a building by a much larger and older man. He sighed to himself, desiring very much to walk away.

Still, his curiosity got the better of him. He approached the man quite casually-he was quite a bit larger, but was the type to rely only on his size to aid him in a fight. Jeff was not so much the bulky type, but years of experience made slamming him to the opposite wall and driving a knife into this throat a in the park. Jeffrey kept his back turned to the whimpering girl as he watched the stranger fall to the ground, watched the blood pool around him, watched him gasp for air...

It was a satisfying sight, to say the least.

After the man stopped moving he turned to face her. Before he got a chance to drill her with questions, her eyes rolled back and she collapsed forwards into his arms, nearly knocking him over.

Well isn't this fantastic. He thought darkly, trying to adjust her position in his arms. He could have-and probably should have-killed her right then and there, but his desire to find out who she was overpowered his reason.

Jeff had made some dumb decisions in his life. Picking the girl up, carrying her to his house, and letting her lie unconscious on his couch was not one of the better ones.

After she was settled, he sat in a large armchair across the room from her and settled in to watch. An hour or so passed, and the girl didn't stir at all. Frustrated, Jeff stumbled back over and knelt beside the girl.

Here eyes were closed already, but he watched them shut even tighter and her quiet voice spoke. It was only a quick whisper, but Jeff could still make out the words, "Who are you?"

He was silent. "Who are you?" She said again, louder. Her eyes relaxed open, the emerald orbs trembling in fear.

"Funny-I was going to ask the same thing." He scoffed, stepping away.

"Where am I?" She pleaded, sitting up and pulling her legs to her chest.

"My home." He said simply, returning to the seat across the room and picking up a book from the table beside it.

"C-can I go?" She whispered fearfully.

"Sure." He shrugged. "But if I were you, I'd wait until morning."

She looked back up at him, almost in disbelief. "If I can go, then why would you bring me here?"

Jesus Christ. "Would you rather I'd left you in the ally?" Jeff snapped.

Her gaze returned to the floor. "...Thank you." She was silent, expecting a "you're welcome" in return. She was waiting for one that wouldn't come, though, so her thanks hung in the air for quite some time. "But...uh...who are you?"

"What do you care?"

"Fine. Will you at least tell me your name?" She pouted.

"Jeff."

"My name is Darcy!" She gushed warmly.

"Congrats." Jeff scowled, trying to focus on the words in front of him.

"You live here?" She said, looking around. The knowledge that she could leave at any time had caused her to immediately warm up to him.

Jeff twitched his noise in annoyance. "Yes."

"All alone?"

"No."

"Who else lives here?"

"People."

She pouted, frustrated with the killer's lack of answers. "You're not one for making friends, are you?"

To this, Jeff made no reply. She laid back down on the couch, curling up. Jeffrey glanced up at her every now and then. She was still awake. She was on her side, pulling at a loose thread on the cushion, looking bored and disappointed. He sighed heavily before talking. "You'll probably meet him in the morning. He's out right now."

He gaze fell settled on him. "Who?"

"My roommate."

Her mouth spread into a grin. "Okay, Jeff." She said, curling up to fall asleep.

Jeff rolled his eyes. Some people.

* * *

This was not the first time he'd accidentally fallen asleep while reading. It was also not the first time Jack had woken him up coming home. Once his eyes came into focus he could see that it was still very dark. Darcy was sleeping soundly, unawoken by the sound of the door opening. The slam that followed did the trick though, startling her awake.

"Jeff?" She questioned, rubbing her eyes.

"Jack's home." He yawned, looking for the masked boy.

Jack came stomping in, tossing his blue mask to the side. "Hey, Jeff! Did I wake you?"

"Kind of. What time is it?" Jeff stood up and stretched out his arms, angry at himself for falling asleep.

Jack shrugged. "You could fool me. I'm guessing four-ish?" He held us the small, blue cooler in his hand. "I just finished up. It took me a lot longer than usual. People keep waking up and whatnot."

"You can always bring me with you." Jeff offered, pushing the cooler away. "I'm quite good at putting people back to sleep."

Jack smiled. "Nah. It's not impressive if they're dead." He beamed down at the cooler in his hand. "Speaking of, why are you home so early? I'm always home before you."

Rather than reply, Jeffrey jerked his chin to the confused girl on the couch. Jack turned his attention to her and started to laugh. "Well, good for you, Jeff-"

"Idiot." Jeff spat, glaring at him.

Jack shook his head. "I'm only kidding." He ambled over to the girl and extended his right hand. "I'm Jack. Ever heard of 'Eyeless Jack?'"

She nodded her head.

"Well, that's me." He said proudly.

She gently took his hand, staring at the cooler. "Then, in that cooler, you've got..."

"Kidneys." He said, once more holding it up. "Ever had one?"

She shook her head.

"Not the most talkative one, is she?" Jack looked over at his friend. The dark haired boy was standing over by the line where the living room became the kitchen (as the rooms were connected, separated only by a change in flooring from carpet to hardwood), only half paying attention to the two.

"She was earlier. You just woke her."

"Did I? I'm terribly sorry, Miss-ah, Miss-"

"Darcy." She said softly.

"Yes, Miss Darcy, of course!" Jack laughed, sitting down in the chair Jeff sat in earlier. "Well, since you were both asleep, we might as well all hit the sack, eh?"

Darcy nodded, curling up. Jeff yawned, but ultimately opted to stay awake anyway. He never cared much for sleep, even when he was a child. Now that he lacked parental authority in my life, Jeff could go for days.

* * *

The sun shining through the windows caused Darcy to begin stirring. Jeff stood across the way in the kitchen, leaning on the counter. Once he noticed her, he pulled his hood up to hide his face-there was no reason that she had to be any more terrified of him than she already was. She sat up, rubbing her eyes and looking around for Jeff. She took in the bloody sweatshirt on his body and gulped. "So, I can go home, right?" She squeaked.

Jeff rolled his eyes. It wasn't like he'd chained her up in the basement. "Yes, please do."

She shakily stood up and he finally got a good look at her. She was tiny-she couldn't be more than 5'4". She had a small build in general, with pale green doe eyes on her face. Her skin was pale-almost as white as - and her nose and cheeks were dotted with light brown freckles. Her long red hair fell halfway down her back and had a soft curl to it. She wore a softball jersey bearing the number twenty-nine on it over a very short white miniskirt-Jeff got the feel of an Japanese schoolgirl when he looked at it. What caught his eye was the black scarf that was tied around her face covering her mouth. "Are you done staring at me?" She scolded, frowning at me.

"I might ask you the same, Miss Darcy."

Her eyes fell to the floor. "It's not very often I come across some guy wearing a bloody sweatshirt."

"It's still very rude to stare." Jeff sneered, still hiding behind his long black hair.

Darcy approached very carefully. "Sorry. I really, really hate to ask, but, uh...can you take me home? I don't know where I am."

"Ask Jack."

"But I don't know Jack."

"You don't know me."

She leaned her head to the side, trying to see past my hair. "Why are you hiding your face?"

"Some people find my appearance a bit...disturbing."

"Oh, it can't be that bad." She giggled, reaching out to move his hair. He smiled to himself before turning to face her.

The sight of his face-which some might consider grotesque- made her hands fly up to cover her mouth. "You look a lot different in the dark." She squeaked. Jeff grinned at her and her hands dropped to her chest. "What happened to your mouth?"

"I happened." She opened her mouth to ask another question, but he held his hand up. "If you're gonna ask about the eyes, then the answer is a lighter."

"And your skin...?"

"Some severe third degree burns can alter the pigment of your skin, turning it brown, and sometimes white." I shrugged. "Shall I take you home?"

She shook her head violently, inching towards the door.

"Tsk, that'd rather rude. You trusted me unconditionally a minute it ago."

She looked over nervously at Jack, who looked looked a lot less menacing than I did. "Can he-"

"No." Jack sighed. He had an annoying habit of pretending to be asleep when he wasn't-Jeff couldn't tell, mostly due to Jack's lack of eyes. People often had the same problem with Jeff-in not knowing his state of consciousness, anyways.

"How long have you been up?"

"Long enough." He replied. "You like scaring people with your face, don't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm gorgeous." Jeff smirked.

Darcy stood shaking, looking from Jeff to Jack. Jack turned his head towards her and spoke. "You can always go alone, but if you want someone to drive you'll have to ask Jeff. I promise, he won't hurt you in broad daylight."

"But he's..." She gulped.

"Nasty?" Jack offered.

"Scary." She finished.


	3. hate everything tbh

"Am I really so terrifying," Jeff began, "That you have to lean away from me in a car?"

The girl was nearly pressed up against passenger door. She had her light orange hair falling down like a curtain between us, which she hasity pulled back so that she could glare at him. "Are we there yet?"

"Yeah, I'm pulling into your driveway right now." He threw out sarcastically. "Darcy, I don't even know where you live."

She turned her attention back to the front. "So where are you going?"

"Towards where I found you. I'm guessing you were walking home, so you should be able to get us to your home from there. Am I correct in my assumptions?"

"Yes." She sank lower in the dark leather seats, but stopped leaning so damn far away. "Thank you." She said forcefully.

"No thanks necessary, ma'am." He replied, using his best-and worst-western accent. This finally got her to laugh.

Her expression turned serious very quickly, though. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

"Would you rather I not? Because that can be arranged very easily."

"No! No, I...was only wondering. You seem like the kind of guy who would be a bit of a dick."

He scoffed. _I _am _a dick._ He thought. "I don't know, Darcy. You're just slightly more tolerable than most."

"Turn left." She said suddenly. He followed her instructions for a while until they came upon a small white house on a corner. Jeffrey made a mental note of the address before she opened the door. "Jeff, you know..." She looked back at him.

"What's up?"

"This is it, right? You're gonna leave me alone, right?" She squeaked.

Jeff scowled. "What's with you? You _really _find my face so terrifying?"

Her hand flew up to the black scarf covering her face. "I..."

Jeff leaned in towards the girl and reached out, grabbing the cloth and tugging it down. It revealed soft pink lips, and a jagged scar going up the right side of her face. He recognized the scar instantly, and the memories came flooding back. The reason for the girl's familiarity was evident; He'd come across her five years ago and given her the very scar. It was very clear that she recognized Jeff as well. "I'm not going to hurt you." He breathed, running his thumb over the scar.

She gulped. "Promise?"

"Sure."

She licked her lips. "Then...maybe...we could be friends!" Her lips twitched into a smile.

"I don't really like friends." Jeff replied darkly, scanning her home. "Get out."

She did as she was told and stepped away from the car. "Please?" He heard her say from outside.

Jeff did not reply, and instead put the car into reverse once more. She frowned as she watched him pull out of her driveway.

He drove away quite apathetically. It wasn't as if she'd seen the last of him; she already knew too much for that to be the case. She watched him kill a man, for God's sake.

* * *

Days passed. Jeff _wanted_ to go visit the strange girl's home, though knew it would be a terrible idea. One morning, close to a week later, he decided that he might as well.

Nightfall came slower than it normally did. When darkness _did_ fall, he had to wait for another few hours just to be safe.

Waiting for the seconds to turn to minutes and minutes to hours was often times worse than watching the sky become dark. Possibly because the former was at a set, fixed rate, while the latter was a bit more flexible. Not that he could alter or control either such phenomenon.

What Jeff _also_ could not control is the time that it was safe to head out. What he could do, however, was not give a fuck about it. Much earlier than he normally would have, Jeff slid his favorite knife into the sheath on his right hip and slipped into the night.

Jeff was very much used to navigating in the darkness, so finding his way to Darcy's home was no skin off his back. He scanned the perimeter of the house, getting a feel for the general build of it. It was not a particularly large house; it was not a particularly small one, either. He narrowed the choice of windows down to the one that looked the most familiar, and silently prayed that he was a good guesser.

As luck would have it, he was. Jeff scaled up the building and slid the window open to revealed her bedroom. It had changed quite a bit, and was now a light blue. Most of the walls were covered in posters of planets and stars. A large telescope was set right in front of the window, forcing Jeff to maneuver around it. The bed was directly to his right, and Jeff found the sleeping girl laying on top of the bed, wearing a short purple tank top and light grey shorts. A laptop was on top of her stomach, but the screen was dark. Jeff simply assumed that she'd fallen asleep while using it.

He let his curiosity get the better of him, and he slid his fingers along the touch pad, making the screen light up. He was greeted with the tumblr dashboard. He scrolled through the page for a bit until he felt her moving. He stepped away from the bed and watched.

Her eyes flew open and she sleepily sat up. She looked at her computer for a minute, then groaned and closed it, setting it off to the side. She laid back down and turn on her side. Our eyes locked for half a second before she opened her mouth to scream.

"Shhhh..." He whispered, holding his hand over her mouth. "It's only me."

She ripped his hand from her face an curled into a ball, tears welling in her eyes. "Why the-"

He moved his hand back to her cheek, lingering over the scar there. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just...I was making sure you hadn't gotten yourself killed. You have a knack for attracting trouble." Jeff licked his lips, wishing he'd thought of something better.

She shrank away from his touch. "You sure have a strange way of being worried about me." She squeaked.

"I didn't say I was worried." Jeff rolled his eyes, pulling his hand away. "I'd call if curiosity, if anything."

Darcy inched away. "Okay. I'm fine. Please leave."

Jeff snorted. "Thought you wanted to be my friend." He said sarcastically, moving to examine the rest of the room.

"I thought you told me no."

Jeff smirked. "I said no such thing."

"You told me you didn't like friends." She corrected herself.

"You're right." He replied, picking up a rolled up map. "What is all this stuff?"

"Um..." She nervously got up and walked over to him. "Be careful with those. They're star charts."

"Star charts." He repeated, opening it up. She had told the truth; The map was in fact a map of the stars. "You like stars."

She nervously ran her hands along the telescope, looking out the window. "Just astronomy in general, really."

"You'll have to show me some constellations." He said, setting the map down. "I'm afraid that I can't recognize, well...any."

"Not even Orion?"

"Who?"

"What about the big dipper?"

"Why is it called the big dipper?"

"Because there's a little dipper."

"Why the fuck would-"

She held a finger to her lips. "You'll wake everyone up."

He lowered his voice, only just realizing that he'd been getting louder and louder. "Should I be familiar with those?"

She shrugged. "There usually the only three that people know-and can recognize."

"Except you."

"I take a particular interest in constellations. They're so beautiful." She breathed, glancing out of her window.

"Yeah." He replied, uninterested.

She carefully approached the hooded boy. "What do you like to do?"

"Read." Jeff said, setting the map down and picking up a book. "Watch movies."

"Well, everyone likes to do that." She said lightly. "But what do _you_ like?"

"Lets _not_ turn this into a soul search-y conversation about me and what makes me special." The killer scoffed. She kept looking at him, expecting him to continue. "I like to kill people." He said finally.

"You're joking, right?"

Jeff glared back at her. "Am I not the poster child for a cold blooded murderer?"

Her gaze returned to the floor. "Oh." She wrung her wrists for a minute, then finally continued. "I won't tell anyone, though. If we can be friends."

"Or I could just kill you." He glanced over for her reaction, and reveled in her wide eyed fear. "But I won't."

She shut her eyes tightly for a minute. "Yet."

"Now you're catching on." Jeff chuckled.

"So, we can be friends?"

"If I say yes, will you stop asking?"

"Only if you mean it."

"You're such a girl."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He shook him head. "Figure it out." He shrugged, making his way back to her window.

"Where are you going?"

"Home. Where else?"

"But you didn't say yes." She pouted.

With one leg already out the window, he sighed. "Fine. Yes."

"Then hold on." She practically flew over to her desk. "You have a phone, right?"

"Yeah." He replied, raising his brow.

She scribbled furiously for a moment, then handed him a piece of paper. "The next time you plan on showing up in the middle of the night, call. Or text. Just do something."

"Aw, did I scare you?" Jeff mocked. "Calling ahead isn't really my style."

"Well, you don't _have_ to. But...please do." She pushed the piece of paper into his chest, forcing him to take it.

Jeff immediately crumpled it and shoved it in his pocket. "So long, Darcy." He mumbled, carefully starting to scale down the house.

She watched him until he reached the bottom, then reached up and slammed the window down, locking it.


	4. i hate my lifeeeeeee

At this point,Jeff was making it up as I went along. He'd never found himself in a situation like this before. he spent the next few days staring at the number she'd scrawled down for him, considering it. Eventually he gave up and he called her, inviting her over that night. As a matter of fact, she was ringing his doorbell right now.

Jack got up before Jeff had a chance. He opened the doro with a wide grin. "Hiya!" The redhead said cheerfully, stepping inside and making her way into the living room where Jeff sat. "I'm so glad you called me! I was beginning to think maybe you'd forgotten-"

"Calm yourself, Darcy." Jeff sighed. He gestured to his masked friend, who was returning to the living room. "You remember Jack?"

Darcy beamed up at him. "How could I forget?"

Jack settled into a seat across the room. "It'd be pretty hard. I showed you a cooler full of organs. Well, just one type. Kidneys." He scratched his neck, yawning.

Darcy turned back to me. "So what are we doing?"

"Movie night." Jack gushed excitedly.

She smiled softly. "What movie?"

"I was thinking of a few." Jeff said, picking up the remote. "But you're the guest here, so I suppose it's up to you."

"What kind of movies do you like to watch?" She asked sweetly, sitting beside me on the couch.

To this Jeff made no reply. She pouted and turned her attention to the television. "What are we gonna watch? _Friday the 13th_?"

"Do you really think I'm that cliche?" I snorted.

Her face reddened in color. "Sorry. What movies _do_ you like to watch?"

"Uh...movies? _Singin' in the Rain_ is my favorite. I like older stuff a lot." Jeff mumbled while switching over to Netflix. "I tried to get into the 'scary' movies, but I never found any that could wow me."

"How does one 'wow' you?" She asked, inching closer.

"High budget productions and realistic circumstances." Jeff stated in reply.

"I meant, how does a person wow you?"

_They don't._ He thought darkly. "I can appreciate a lovely smile." The boy answered halfheartedly.

As if on cue, her light pink lips spread into a bright grin. "Trying to wow me?" Jeff asked sarcastically.

"If I was, would I have succeeded?"

Jeff studied her fave for a good while, before shrugging. "I guess so." Her beautiful smile vanished in an instant. "That's what I'm talking about." He continued.

"What do you-"

"That." I gestured to her face. "Your smile disappeared just like that. Whereas mine," I gestured towards my own. "Will be here forever."

She shuddered. "You did that to yourself, right?" She asked gently, reaching up to touch my scars.

"Yeah." He said, flipping through the endless bad movies.

"How?" She said, running her thumb over the length of it.

"Same way I did yours." Jeff replied, pulling his face away.

"Oh..." She mumbled. She drew her hand back and fumbled with the black scarf around her neck, tugging it up to cover her face.

"Well don't cover it up." Jeff chuckled. He reached over and pulled the scarf off of her neck entirely, casting it aside. "I take pride in my work, you know."

She nodded, but otherwise remained silent, instead moving closer to the boy beside her. Jeff rolled his eyes, but chose not to comment, instead turning on _Better off Dead._

Darcy was rather uninterested in the movie-or rather, that's what Jeff rationalized. Within the first fifteen minutes, her head was resting on his shoulder and she was sleeping.

"I feel like someone should tell her to stop falling asleep around you." Jack commented.

"She's not exactly the wisest person." His friend agreed.

"Awful pretty, though." Jack added, getting up. "Don't you think?"

Jeff examined the girl for a minute, then shrugged. "I guess."

"You guess?" He laughed, throwing his blue mask to the side. "She's beautiful."

"I'm telling Foster you said that." Jeff shook his head, returning his attention to the show.

"Foster will not be upset with me for appreciating a young girl's looks."

"Thought you were gay." Jeff snorted.

"You're straight; Are you unable to notice a man who is particularly attractive?"

"I don't even notice women who are 'particularly attractive.'" he replied, making air quotes with his fingers.

"Then open your damn eyes, Jeff." Jack shrugged. "I'm going to Foster's place. Don't wait up."

"Have fun." Jeff smirked up at him. "Make good choices."

"I'm going to my boyfriend's place, not a fucking frat house."

"Make good choices." Jeff repeated.

Jack huffed, but left the room anyways.

Darcy mumbled something unintelligible and adjusted herself so that her whole body was leaning on Jeff's left side. Her head found it's way to his neck and her arm draped itself across his chest. The rest of her body curled into a little ball that pressed itself against his side. Jeff grunted in annoyance, shifting away. She clung to him still, mumbling something else.

Jeff groaned. "Get off." He shook her, but she stayed asleep. "Darcy!" Nothing. Jeff sighed heavily and tried to focus on the television. _Joy._


	5. i am 99 percent marching band

The house that he was approaching was small and dark in color. He inched towards the front door, anxiously scanning the neighborhood. But it was late; everyone was asleep. He knelt beside the front door lock and pulled his tools from the brown pack he was carrying. One the lock came undone, he put the pack back on his shoulder and entered the strange home.

This was his first time surveying the scene from the inside, so he took his time with each room. This was certainly an older home, as there were no stairs. Jeff found three bedrooms. The largest contained a sleeping woman, and the other two each held a single child, each sleeping soundly.

Jeff crept slowly into the mother's room, pulling his knife from it's sheath. He knelt beside her, his twisted grin growing with every second that passed. Her mouth hung open ever so slightly, so he placed his knife in it. Her eyes flew open as soon as he started cutting. Jeff held a gloved finger to his lips. "Shhh..." She whimpered helplessly as he dug his knife through her cheeks. "Why, you look almost as lovely as me." He chuckled darkly.

She tried to talk, but found the the sensation of moving her mouth too painful.

"So sorry to wake you..." Jeff said dramatically, standing up. "But I'll leave you now. Just close your eyes and-" he stopped for a moment to wipe the knife off on his sleeve. "Go to sleep." Jeff finished, positioning the knife at her neck. he severed her jugular and stepped back, leaving her to bleed out. He once more wiped the blood off the knife and slipped it back into it's place. Jeff exited the room, glancing at the doors to the other bedrooms warily. He didn't bother with kids very much; He often found them too easy to kill. Instead, Jeff took off his black leather gloves and shoved them into the brown bag he was carrying.

He dug around for his phone as well, pulling it out. He scrolled through until he came to Darcy's number. He hit call and then crept out of the house, making sure not to touch anything.

She answered in a sweet, tired voice. "Hey, Jeff. How are you?"

"I'm coming over." Jeff said simply, already setting out in her direction.

"Oh!" She brightened up at bit. "Okay! Do you like hot chocolate? I can-"

"I'll pass." He cut her off. "See you." He hung up and tossed the cell phone back in his bag.

* * *

Jeff looked up at the already open window and sighed. He started to scale the side of the house until she poked her head out. "You know, I have a fire escape ladder. If you want." She called down, grinning.

Jeff shrugged and dropped back down. "Go for it." She disappeared for a minute, and then a rope ladder came flying out. Jeff grabbed hold of it and pulled, testing it out. He found it sturdy enough, and started climbing. "Rapunzel, Rapunzel..." He muttered darkly.

As soon as he was up in her bedroom, she pulled the ladder back up. "This is exciting. I've never used it before." She whispered happily while returning it to her closet.

Jeff shrugged and sat in the chair at her desk, watching her. She definitely looked like she'd just been woken up. She wore a close fitting dark purple shirt and very loose plaid pajama pants. Her feet bore mismatched socks-one was blue, and the other black. And to top it all off, her red hair was pulled up into a messy bun.

"So, what brings you?" She asked, sitting cross-legged on her bed.

"Nothing better to do." he answered. "Should I have a reason when I come to see you?"

She smiled. "I suppose you don't _need_ one."

He said nothing else.

"Um..." She bit her bottom lip in thought. "Tell me about yourself."

"I don't do back stories." Jeff said flatly.

"You can always ask about mine." She suggested.

"Or you could just tell me." He had the sinking feeling he wasn't getting much choice in the matter anyways.

"Well, you already know my name is Darcy. I'm...well, I'm sixteen, and...I've been home schooled all my life. And..." She looked up back at the hooded boy. "I don't know what else."

"You like astronomy." he added.

She held her hand to her mouth to stifle a giggle. "Yeah. And your name is Jeff, and you like to read and watch movies."

"And kill people."

She grimaced. "I'm pretending that I don't know that."

"Good luck with that."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty."

"Where did you go to school?"

Jeff scratched his chin. "I went to a lot of different schools as a kid. I stopped going halfway through ninth grade."

"Why?"

He gestured to his face.

"I see." She pulled her knees to her chest. "Do you have any family?"

"None that are alive." he smiled lightly to himself.

"Did you...?"

"Yeah."

"Wow. Do you, like...regret it, or anything?"

"Not really." He ran his thumb over the tattoo on his left wrist. "Maybe my brother."

She smiled. "You have a brother? I have a brother. He's a lot older than me."

"Liu was...a year or so older than me." he said, his smiling fading.

"His name was Liu?"

"Yes. It was."

"He sounds sweet."

"He was." His gaze rose to the ceiling. He felt her moving, then a weight on his lap. The frail little girl had curled herself up on his lap, clutching his sweatshirt. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm sorry." She spoke softly. "You just looked like you needed a hug."

"I don't." He all but growled.

She remained seated on his legs, though, and buried her face in his neck. Jeff sighed heavily, but did nothing to remove the tiny girl. Her breathing slowed, becoming steadier, indicating to Jeff that she was asleep. "Good night, Darcy." He mumbled softly, beginning to nod off himself.


	6. do you ever just wanna not

Jeff never did enjoy sleeping. Especially when other people were around. And yet somehow, this was the second time that he'd fallen asleep with Darcy there. Thankfully when he came to, she was still sleeping curled up in his lap. The light shining in through the window told him it was around sunrise, and he cursed himself under his breath. He'd never meant to stay this long. Carefully he transferred Darcy's sleeping form from his lap to her bed and then started out the window.

He was about to begin his descent when a small, tired voice interrupted him. "Where are you going?" The red head piped up, her eyes only barely open.

"Somewhere that isn't here." She made a face at this and Jeff chuckled. "Home." He elaborated.

"Why?" The girl sat upright, curling into a tiny ball.

"Because I live there." He snorted.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious. I mean..." She bit her lip for a moment. "You could stay."

"I can't." Jeff shook his head. "Jack just gets so worried about me."

"Are you being sarcastic?"

"I'm always sarcastic." Jeffrey sneered, trying to worm his way out of the window.

She opened her mouth to reply, but she didn't get the chance. The killer was already outside the house, scaling his way down the building. As soon as he was on the ground he pulled his hood up to shield his eyes from the sun. It was late enough for people to be out, so he geared himself up to take the long way home, and cursed himself again for staying so long.

* * *

Jack and Jeff were best friends; there was no denying it. Jeff met him when he was only fifteen and Jack kept him off the streets. He taught Jeff most of what he knew about how to sneak about in the night. Jeff considered Jack to be the greatest man he'd ever met.

That said, Jeff fucking hated him.

Jeff came home to find him sprawled out on the kitchen floor with a half-eaten kidney in his hand. And you know what? He'd be okay with that. That's Jack's business. But the rest of the kitchen was left in a complete and total mess. There was blood _all over Jeff's damn floor,_ every damn cabinet was open, and the fucking the counters were _sticky_ (God knows what was on them).

"Jack!" The killer snarled, kicking his friend awake. Jeff curled into a little ball on the floor, groaning. "Fucking _get up!_"

Jack finally did, rubbing his forehead. "What the hell is your problem?"

"You left..._my kitchen...a mess!"_ Jeff spat.

The older male before me started to laugh. "I'm sorry?" He cackled.

If Jack wasn't already dead, Jeff would have killed him. "Jack-"

"You are so damn rude sometimes." He yawned, still chuckling. "A simple, 'Jack, clean up the kitchen' would have sufficed."

"If you remember, that is what I said. The first time this happened." Jeff growled.

"Fucking neat freak." Jack muttered, getting up. He shoved what was left of the organ in his hand into his mouth, then started closing the cabinets.

"Wash your hands." The raven haired boy grunted. "You're getting kidney on my cabinets."

Jack huffed, but did as his friend asked. "You really fucking suck."

"And you swallow." Jeff retorted.

His scowl became a grin. "Fuck off."

Jeff followed his advice, strolling over to the living room and seating himself on their couch. Jack followed shortly, grumbling to himself. "Why are you so pissy today?"

"Feel asleep last night. Came home to find you trashed my kitchen. What do you expect?"

"You fell asleep? Where?" Jack chuckled, throwing himself down on the couch beside Jeff.

"At Darcy's place." The pale boy responded, searching for the remote.

"What were you, uh, doing there?" Jack teased.

"Saying hello. Get your mind out of the gutter." Jeff snarled.

"Shit, man. Maybe you _need_ to get laid." He cackled.

"You're an ass." Jeff replied, picking up the remote and turning on the television. "What movie do you want to-"

"Woah, woah-don't go changing the subject, Jeff. We're talking about Darcy." Jack smirked. "Hey, if you were trying to hit it, I wouldn't blame you. She was pretty."

Jeffrey sighed. "Well, I'm not."

"You know you like her."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Jeff grumbled, scrolling through his Netflix.

"Please. If you didn't like her, she wouldn't be alive."

To this, Jeff made no reply. Jack started chuckling again. He liked being right. _Too bad he's not._ Jeff thought darkly.


	7. woohoo back to updating

An entire week passed before he contacted her again. Mostly to prove a point to Jack, but it did him some good as well. He rationalized it all by telling himself that Darcy was too attached to him as it was, but after his conversation with Jack he was terrified that he was the only one getting attached to anyone.

As Jeff sat on his bed debating with himself, he received a text from the girl in question, and it prompted him to call her. He did so with no hesitation; it was only a phone call, after all.

"Hey!" She said pleasantly upon answering his call.

"What's up?" He asked, pulling his knees to his chest.

"Nothing-where have you been?"

"Around." The boy answered. "You texted me."

"Yeah, I did. I just hadn't heard from you in a while." She giggled. "Where's 'around?'"

"My house, mostly." He laughed once at himself. "I'm kind of a shut-in."

"I don't blame you." She sighed. "What would it take to get you to stir outdoors?"

"That depends on where we're going."

"Woah, I never said _anything_ about a 'we.'"

Jeff smirked to himself. He could easily picture the wide grin on her face and the slight tint of red that was surely shading her cheeks. "It was implied."

"Well, aren't you a smart cookie?"

"Where _are_ we going?"

"Wherever the wind takes us." She said dreamily.

Jeff pushed his long bangs out his face and sighed. "I'll see you tonight, then."

"Got a time frame for me?"

"Late. Go to sleep; I'll wake you up when I get there."

"I'm gonna scream."

"I'll take my chances." With that, he pulled the phone from his ear and ended the call. He already wore a grin; hell, he always did. It seems to sprean even wider, though, even if that was possible.

He tossed his phone to the side and feel back on his bed. It was still light out, so he went downstairs to find Jack and a movie to watch.

* * *

"Where are you off to?" Jack asked, pausing the movie on the screen.

"Places." Jeff replied, exchanging his bloody sweatshirt for a clean one and tossing his leather pack over his shoulder.

"With...Darcy?" Jack teased.

Jeff rolled his eyes. "No."

"Are you sure? Because you've never walked out during your favorite movie before. During your favorite number." Jack gestured to the television screen, which bore Gene Kelly in the middle of singing the title song, "Singin' in the Rain."

Jeff nodded. "I'm just going out, Jack."

"I don't believe you."

"Don't wait up." Jeff chuckled as he headed for the door.

"I won't." Jack grumbled, resuming the show.

Rather than walk, the killer opted to drive, parking a few blocks away from the fragile young redhead's home. He stumbled out of the car and checked his items. His favorite knife strapped to his hip, and everything he could need in his bag; his black leather gloves, a flashlight, a lighter, mace, and a switchblade. He stared at the items in the bag before deciding that he didn't need them and tossed them in his car. He kept his knife, however, as he always did. He started ambling the last few blocks.

The cold night air swirled around the boy, making him shiver. It was getting closer to fall, and the nights were staring to get cold. His mind was preoccupied with thoughts of getting himself a new jacket, so when a dark figure approached him from the left, he took no notice. It wasn't until the figure put a hand to his shoulder that he even flinched.

"Hey, J-" The strange man started.

Jeff's immediate reaction was to to grab the hand on his shoulder and twist it back, causing the stranger to fall over. He climbed on top of the man's chest and pulled his knife out, holding it to the stranger's neck. "Who the hell are you?" He snarled.

"Jeff, please stop it!" A familiar voice said in panic.

Jeff's expression hardened, pressing the knife harder against the man's neck. "Who are you?!"

"Jeff, it's me!" The man stopped thrashing and his green eyes met Jeff's pale blue ones. Jeff recognized the emerald eyes immediately and he gasped.

"You're...but...that's impossible..." His jaw dropped.

"Jeff, get the hell off me!" The man insisted.

Jeffrey did as he was told, scrambling backwards. "_Liu?!_" He whispered.

The killer's brother rose to his feet, then ambled over to the other boy. "Hey, little brother."

Jeff was on his feet in an instant. "How!?"

Liu pushed his long, dark brown hair out of his face. "You're not that good at killing people, Jeff. Or at least, back then you weren't."

In the darkness Jeff could make out his brother's scars. He has ones that reflected his own, creating the look of a permanent smile. Other scars stood out on his neck and arms. The man wore all black, with a black and white scarf hanging loosely from his neck. "Liu...I can't believe you're..."

"Alive?" Liu chuckled. "I can't believe how hard it was to find you. And here you are, hiding out in our hometown-are you staying in our old house?"

Jeff nodded. "I was staying with a friend, but...he and I moved to our old house."

"Would you mind if I joined for a few days? It'd be better than staying in my shitty motel room." Liu smiled gently.

Jeff frowned. Sure, this was his older brother; he loved his brother. Still, he wasn't exactly the most trusting guy.

"Please?" Liu extended his hand to his little brother. Jeff stared at it for a moment, before taking it and and returning his brother's smile.

"You can find your way there, right? I'm...in the middle of something."

"In the middle of what?" Liu asked. Jeff simply ducked his head, and Liu laughed. "What? Got a girlfriend or something?"

"No." Jeff scowled. He turned on his heels and kept walking, calling over his shoulder. "You know, it's not a good idea to sneak up on me. Next time, you'll probably get killed."

Liu shrugged and waved his brother away, headed for his familiar home, unaware of who exactly would be there.

* * *

Jeff came up to Darcy's window and scaled the side of it. Her window was open, as she knew he was coming. He sighed, slipping inside. The girl lay on top of her covers, wearing nothing but a dark blue tank top and grey shorts.

He approached, resting his hands on her shoulders. He shook her lightly, trying to wake her up. Her green eyes fluttered open and she grinned. "Hey." She whispered, sitting up.

"Thought you were going to scream." Jeff stumbled backwards into the chair across the room.

"I forgot." She got up and sauntered over, frowning when she got closer. "What's the matter, Jeff?"

"Remember my brother, Liu?"

"The one who you..."

"Yeah."

"Yeah, I know him-what's the matter?" She knelt beside her, grabbing his hand.

"He's...not dead." Jeff said quietly.


	8. i got surgery and have nothing to do

**I have certainly been updating a lot...this is the second chapter today^^ but I recently got surgery and have _nothing_ to do but write, so expect lots of new chapters! Hooray! ~E**

* * *

"Wh...what?" Darcy furrowed her brow in confusion.

Jeff shrugged his shoulders. "I was on my way here and I ran into him.

Darcy's mouth spread into a wide grin. "That's good, right?"

"I don't know yet." Jeff replied shakily.

Darcy curled herself into her lap. "So what are you going to do?"

"I'm not sure. He asked if he could stay with me for a while. I mean, I told him yes, of course-"

"Can I meet him?" Darcy cut in.

"What?"

"Your brother-can I meet him?"

Jeff frowned. "Why?"

"Why not?" She chuckled sweetly. "I'm sure you'd rather be with him than here right now, and I _was_ hoping to have you all to myself tonight, but..."

Jeff stared at her for a moment. he only just now registered the fact that she was sitting in his lap, and his arms curled protectively around her. Her green eyes trembled slightly. They were almost identical to Liu's, but were far prettier. Around her irises were little silver flecks, which made her eyes catch the moonlight and shine far brighter than they otherwise would. "You...really want to?"

"Why not?" She tilted her head to the side.

He licked his lips slowly. "Get dressed." He instructed.

She lept out of his arms immediatly, flying over to her closet. She reached for the door and froze. "Um..." She looked back and met his gaze awkwardly.

"What?" Jeff frowned.

"Would you mind...um..." Her cheeks colored slightly.

"Sure." Jeff rolled his eyes, but got out of the chair and turned his back to her, crossing his arms.

"Sorry..." She mumbled, throwing the door open and grabbing a pair of black and white leggings and an over sized back sweater. She changed as quickly as she could, then slipped a pair of black flats on her feet. She then tapped Jeff on the shoulder. "I'm just gonna go out the front door, okay?" She told him, picking up her black scarf and tying it around her neck.

He turned around and smiled. "Nonsense." He headed for the window and disappeared from the girl's sight, scaling down to the ground. She poked her head out and frowned.

"Jeff, I can't-"

"Jump." He called back, holding his arms out.

"Are you crazy?" She gulped, staring at the ground.

"Yes, actually. Doesn't mean I won't catch you."

"I'd really rather-"

"And risk waking your family up? Nonsense. Jump."

"I don't trust you." She said nervously, climbing up on the window sill and sitting with her legs hanging out.

"I don't blame you. Jump."

The redhead swallowed hard, then pushed herself off the ledge. She shut her eyes and and fought the scream that bubbled up in her throat until she felt a pair or strong arms break her fall. She opened one eye cautiously to see him chuckling at her.

"Was that really so bad?" He whispered.

"Yes." She pouted, leaning into his chest.

"I'm not carrying you all the way to my car."

"You drove here?"

He set her lightly on her feet. "Yeah. Wasn't in the mood to walk all this way."

"Perfect." She pulled her scarf up to cover her scar, then looked back to Jeff. "Lead the way."

"Must you wear that thing?" He eyed the scarf warily, setting off in the direction he came.

"Does it matter?"

"Yes." He reached over and tugged the scarf away from her face and let his hand drop to his side. He looked down at her hand, then reached out and took it with his own, intertwining his fingers with hers. She smiled, but otherwise didn't comment.

* * *

Liu approached the front door of the home hid parents had died in warily, unwilling to go inside. He found it locked and sighed, ringing the bell and remembering Jeff saying something about a friend living here.

A gray skinned boy opened the door and raised an eyebrow. "Who the hell are you?"

Liu extended his hand. "Ah, my name is Liu. Liu Woods. You're a friend of my little brother's, right?"

Jack took the man's hand and shook it. "Pleasure. Aren't you dead?" he asked bluntly.

"Clearly not." Liu laughed nervously.

"You could be. I'm dead." Jack chuckled. "The name's Jack-Eyeless Jack. Come on in." Jack led the boy inside the home and into the kitchen.

"I'm sorry, did you say you were dead?" Liu frowned in confusion.

"It's not a fun story. Hungry?" Jack opened the fridge and gestured into the inside. "Jeff and I practically live off pizza and ramen, so if you want anything else you're outta luck." He shrugged, sitting on the kitchen counter.

A voice from the other room spoke up. "Jack, who's this?" A short, blonde boy asked.

"Apparently Jeff's brother." Jack smiled. "Head on back and keep watching the movie, Fos. I'll be back in a minute.

Foster frowned, but did as he was told.

"That's my boyfriend." Jack explained. "He isn't here much. Only when Jeff is gone."

"Any idea when Jeff will be back?" Liu rubbed his arms anxiously.

"Sorry love. No clue. I'm pretty sure he went to his little girlfriend's place, so he could out all night or he could be back in an hour. I have no clue." Jack hopped off the counter and shut the refrigerator. "Make yourself at home, dear. I'll be here if you need me." Jack returned to the living room and curled up into the blonde's side.

Liu meandered over to the front door and looked out of one of the windows beside it. Almost immediately a silver car pulled into the driveway and out came his brother. Liu watched him walk around and open the door for a petite, fragile looking girl. Jeff took her by the hand tugged her towards the door. Liu stepped away from the door in time to avoid getting hit when it flew open.

Jack again got out of his seat, this time looking to investigate. "You were too with Darcy, you little liar." Jack grumbled. "Come on Foster, he's home-" Jack disappeared to rally his boyfriend and leave.

Jeff, meanwhile, was preoccupied with Liu. "Good, good. You're here."

"Sure am. Who's the girl?" Liu looked around him to see a tiny little redhead, pulling a black scarf over her mouth.

"This is my-well, she's..." Jeff looked back at her and frowned. "This is Darcy."

Liu smiled and extended his hand to the girl. She took it shyly and he brought her fingers to his lips. "Well, Darcy...you're very beautiful."

Her cheeks colored slightly and she shrank into Jeff's side. "Thank you." She giggled.

"My pleasure." Liu let go of her hand. "Jeff, I had no idea you kept such lovely company."

"Well, I mean..." Jeff's grip on her hand tightened. "She-"

"Your name is Liu, right?" She asked sweetly. "I won't get in your way. I'd planned on having Jeff all to myself tonight, but I'll share him with you. Just for a little bit."

"You're too kind, Darcy. My brother is a lucky man." Liu glared at his brother jokingly. "You said you didn't have a girl-"

"I don't." Jeff shrugged, pulling Darcy further into the home. By now, Jack and Foster had disappeared to Jack's bedroom (Foster didn't care for Jeff's company much), so the trio had the living room to themselves.

Liu followed his brother into the living room and sat in the large armchair. Jeff and Darcy seated themselves om the couch across the room. "So, Liu-Jeff says he doesn't do back stories." She teased, elbowing the male beside her. "Do you?"

"Sure. What would you like to know?" Liu leaned forward, eyeing the pair with a bit of disdain.

"Where do you live?" She questioned.

"Wherever. I've been looking for Jeff for so long that I really don't have a home anymore."

"Why were you looking for Jeff?"

Liu shrugged. "Why wouldn't I? He's my little brother."

Darcy smiled at his answer. "So, are you just gonna stay here then?"

"If Jeff lets me-and if I get to see more of you." Liu grinned slyly, and Darcy's cheeks flushed.

"I'll be around. If Jeff doesn't get sick of me."

Jeff laughed once at her comment. He was leaning forward with his head resting in his right hand. His left hand was resting lightly on the ginger's knee. "I'm not going to get sick of you." He chuckled. "Not yet, anyways. And Liu-you're welcome to stay as long as you like." He smiled up at his brother softly.

Darcy's gaze softened. "You're not gonna ditch me to hang out with your brother all the time, are you?"

Jeff frowned. "No, of course not." He reached out and pulled the scarf off her mouth. "I told you to stop wearing that."

Liu caught a glimpse of the scar on the right side of her face and sucked in a quick breath of air. He furrowed his brow in thought, but otherwise didn't comment.

"Liu, I hate to leave when we only just showed up, but I promise my time to Darcy tonight-"

"Where are you going?" Liu narrowed his eyes.

"'Wherever the wind takes us,' I believe. Is that correct, Darcy?"

Darcy put a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle. "Yep, that's it."

Jeff nodded and stood up, taking the girl by the hand and bolting out the door with her in tow, leaving his older brother staring angrily after them. "Glad to know he's happy to see me." He grumbled sarcastically to himself.


	9. incoherent screams

***screams* Okay, no longer a short chapter. It's now a long chapter. Also, I wanted to note...the universally accepted headcanon is that Liu was younger than Jeff, as it's not stated at all in the actual pasta. However, in this story Liu is a year older than Jeff. ~E**

* * *

Liu laid on his brother's couch, eyes barely open. Some television show was on, but he wasn't watching it. It was morning, but he'd spent the entire night up with Jeff and Jack, reliving his childhood with Jeff for Jack's entertainment. Jeff and Jack had left early that morning to get breakfast, and now he wished he had taken them up on the offer to come with. He was now trying to force himself to stay awake until his brother got home-he knew Jeff well enough to know that if he came home and Liu was asleep, he'd try to scare him awake. He finally allowed himself to close his eyes, and it seemed to him that as soon as he did, the doorbell rang. His eyes flew open and he hopped on his feet.

Upon dashing to the front door and opening it, he found a lovely young redhead. He racked his brain for her name, then greeted her with a smile. "Danni!" He said warmly, extending his hand to her.

"Darcy." She corrected, taking his hand and shaking it lightly. "Is Jeff-"

"You know, you just missed him. He and Jack left a little bit ago." Liu grimaced. "I think they'll be back soon-ish. If not, I can keep you company-why don't you come in?" The man stepped to the side and gestured to the home, and the girl happily ducked inside. She continued inside and turned left, bringing her to the living room.

Darcy clicked her tongue in annoyance, examining the interior. "Jeff certainly isn't an interior designer." She commented, finally absorbing the room. The walls were painted a light cream color, and likely had always been painted that color, long before Jeff became the master of the home. The walls held no further decor on them. Other than a long couch, a couple of armchairs, and a television in the corner, the room was bare. A quick glance behind her confirmed the kitchen was the same way. It didn't look _lived in._ It just looked empty. "Does anyone actually live here, or nah?"

"This was pretty much how our parents left it." Liu approached the girl from behind, and Darcy spun around to face him.

"Your parents?"

"This was the house our parents were killed in. Upstairs." Liu made an abstract gesture upwards. "Apparently he hasn't touched _anything_ up there, so it's still a damn murder scene. I really don't want to go up there, but that's where my bedroom was. I'm crashing on the couch until I work up the nerve."

Darcy's face fell. "That's really sad."

"And if he really didn't touch anything, that means my sheets are going to be covered in dried up crusty blood. I don't want to clean up my own dried up blood. I hate blood." Liu strode past her and collapsed on the couch. His hands flew to his eyes and began to run them while he continued ranting. "I asked Jeff to deal with it, but he straight up told me he didn't care!"

Darcy followed the older and seated herself in Jeff's favorite armchair. "I'm...I'm really sorry. I'm sure you know Jeff better than I do, but I'm sure he didn't mean it to be _mean._"

"_Mean._" Liu repeated, laughing once. "Of course not. He just does it because he _really doesn't care. _I don't know which is worse."

"Oh, he cares, he just-"

"Did he try to kill you?"

"Excuse me?"

"I saw your scar the other night. Did he give you that?"

Darcy's hand rose to the black cloth covering the bottom half of her face. He pulled it down to expose the scarred skin and forced a smile. "Five years ago. I'm over it now. Besides, he-"

"I got my scars five years ago, too. Looks like he only got halfway done with yours." Liu frowned.

Darcy rested her fingers on the scar lightly. "I really don't remember it much. I was only eleven."

"But you've forgiven him?"

Darcy fell silent for a moment. Her eyes darted around the room, going anywhere to avoid the man's gaze. "Yes, I have." She squeaked. "Do we have to talk about this?"

Liu sighed. "Of course not. Forgive me for pressing such an unhappy subject." Leaning forward and resting his forearms on his knees, the man continued. "What would you like to talk about?"

Darcy's eyes settled on Liu once more. "What was Jeff like? As a kid?"

"He was such a dork. Still is." Liu chuckled. "Never did get along with anyone but me; I see that's changed now. I could tell you some _crazy _stories, but you'd have to swear never to tell him I told you."

"Cross my heart." Excited now, Darcy shifted forward to the edge of the seat. "Hope to die."

As the girl spoke, the front door slammed open and Jeff and Jack came marching in. Jeff came around the corner with a large box of donuts in hand. His gaze settled on the girl and is mouth spread into a grin. "_Someone_ is sitting in my chair, and _someone_ isn't getting and donuts if they don't move their ass._  
_

"Bite me." The girl stood and gestured to the seat, Jeff took her place and the redhead inserted herself on his lap. "You're less comfortable than your chair."

"Maybe the universe is trying to inform you that my lap is not a chair." The killer grumbled, adjusting the girl so that he could set the box on her lap. "We come bearing gifts." He stated proudly, flipping the box open. "Liu, you still like white frosting with rainbow sprinkles, right? Because that's what we got you."

Liu smiled warily up at Darcy. "He's a lot nicer when you're around."

The girl shrugged, turning her focus entirely on Jeff. Liu watched them converse, tuning out the actual words, only scowling at the sight of the fragile-looking girl clinging to him.

* * *

The killer wasn't blind. He noticed his brother eyeing the girl the entirety of the time she spent curled up on his lap, all the way until she left to return to home. Jeff was very aware of his brother's admiration of the girl; he wished very much to claim that he did not care. Much to his dismay, he was _also_ very aware of his own feelings towards the girl, feelings that he found much stronger than he wished to admit.

They _were_ there, however. There was simply no denying that-which is exactly why he hung outside her window, tapping on it lightly. He hadn't called, so she knew not of his arrival, so she didn't bother to open her window, or even unlock it. He watched the dark curtains pull away and the redhead sleepily opened the window. "What are you doing here?" She hissed.

"Why am I ever here?" He replied. "Can you move so that I can come in?"

Darcy anxiously stepped away from the window and the boy tumbled through the window, scrambling to his feet. "Jeff, you really can't be here. Not tonight."

"Why not?" He asked, folding his arms over his chest.

In response, the girl gestured to her bed, where another sleeping girl lay. "This is Anne. Her parents were out for the night, and she doesn't like being alone in her house at night, so she crashed here." She explained.

Jeff examined the girl with a certain matter of distaste. "What is she, four?"

"Do you have to be a four year old to be afraid of people like you?" She asked, sitting gently on her bed.

"Point taken."

"Go home, Jeff. I'll talk to you tomorrow." The ginger lay down, pulling the covers over her head.

"This can't wait."

"Don't you want to go spend time with your brother or something?" She groaned, burying her head in the pillow.

"That's just it." The boy sat in her chair across the room and continued, staring up at the ceiling. "Liu…he likes you. That's a problem."

"Why is that a problem?" She mumbled into her pillow.

"Because I like you."

"What? You can't have the same friends as your brother?" She yawned.

"Wrong kind of 'like,' Darcy."

She fell silent for a moment. "…What?" She said finally, sitting up. The girl beside her shifted in her sleep, making us both freeze. She soon fell still again, and I continued.

"I _like _you, Darcy."

"You're joking, right?" She asked, her hushed tone colored

with anger. "You have to tell me this at four in the morning with-" She didn't finish the thought, instead uttering a grunt of frustration and laying back down. Pulling the covers over her head.

"Darcy-"

"_Go home, Jeff." _She all but growled. "I'll talk to you tomorrow." She repeated, curling into a ball.

With that, the killer rose to his feet and left the way he came. His face remained expressionless while he walked to his car and got in, driving away. He was unsure of what exactly had happened. She seemed…_angry_ with him for expressing his thoughts on her. Still, he'd at least accomplished what he'd come to do.

* * *

He was greeted by his brother upon his arrival home. "Where've you been?" He asked.

"Around." The man replied, pushing past his brother.

"Where's 'around?'"

"Well…" Jeff began, seating himself in his favorite armchair. "I went and saw Darcy." The younger male replied smugly.

Liu smiled. "Oh, Darcy. How is she?"

"She's fine, Liu."

"Next time you go see her, can I come?"

"I might not go see her again."

Liu's face fell. "Why not?"

"She's not too happy with me at the moment."

"Why-?"

"Don't worry about it, Liu." Jeff waved his brother away.

Liu grimaced. "She's awful pretty."

"I guess."

"Does she have a boyfriend?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Do you think she'd say yes if I asked her out?"

Jeff hesitated before slowly replying. "I don't think she would, no."

"Why not?"

"Because she just met you, Liu."

"So? Put in a good word for me, would you?" Liu requested.

"I don't-" The killer sighed. "Whatever."

"Thanks." Liu stopped to ruffle his brother's hair, then headed off to his bedroom, leaving Jeff sitting alone.


	10. motherfucking macys sale

"You like him, so what's the problem?" Th sleepy girl in Darcy's bed mumbled.

"The problem is that his brother is so...bitter! Like, there's more to what happened than I know." The redhead replied. She sat beside the girl, curled up into a ball and rocking back and forth.

"What happened?" Anne asked, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

"I can't tell you. I'd like to, but I can't."

"Why not?"

"He _trusts _me. I can't betray that. What if he found out I told you and then he decided that he didn't like me anymore? He might-" She cut herself off, bowing her head and sighing. "What does it matter? You don't even know him."

"Do you even know him?" Anne slid off the bed and began collecting her things. "THanks for letting me crash here. I'm heading home. I hope you figure everything out with your boyfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Oh my God, Darcy." The girl threw her bag over her shoulder and headed for the door. "He so totally is."

Darcy rolled her eyes, but toherwise didn't comment. "See you later, Anne." The girl left, slamming the door closed behind her. Darcy rubbed her eyes, exahausted from being woken up so late. Jeff was really screwing with her sleeping habits. She spread out on her bed and closed her eyes, planning to fall asleep before she called Jeff.

Much to her dismay, she didn't get the chance. A few minutes later, scratching at her window told her she wouldn't have to call the boy after all. "Are you freaking kidding me?" She grumbled, getting up to unlock the window and let him in.

The boy came tumbling through, careful not to knock over her telescope. "I just saw that chick leave." He explained, standing up.

Darcy returned to her bed and seated herself, gesturing for him to sit as well, presumably in his usual spot across the room. He did, crossing his arms over his chest. "Your brother isn't happy with you." She said simply, pulling her knees to her chest.

"I was unaware that I was here to talk about my brother."

"You aren't, but this is important, okay?"

"Sure. He's upset with me. He has every reason to be." The killed shrugged, crossing his legs.

"You scarred him up; There has to be more to it than that, or he wouldn't be so bitter."

Jeff rolled his eyes. "He went to jail for me, then I killed his parents and tried to kill him. I think that's reason enough."

She fell silent for a moment. "Went I jail for you?"

"When we were kids. He was supposed to be there for a year, but some shit went down and he was there for about two weeks." Jeff shook his head.

"You also won't wash his sheets, apparently?" She cocked her head to the side.

Jeff laughed once, uncrossing both his arms and legs and leaning forward. "Do I look like a damn maid to you? I'm supposed to wash his damn sheets because he can't handle a little blood?"

She got up and slowly ambled over, seating herself in his lap. "He makes you sound like kind of a dick."

"I _am_ kind of a dick." The man's arms circled around her, holding her to his chest. "Whatever he said, I'm sure he wasn't exaggerating."

"But you still like me."

"Yes."

"Good." The girl curled herself around the killer and buried her face in his neck.

"I see your thoughts on the matter have altered."

"I was only upset last night because I was tired. And because of Liu." She mumbled into his neck.

Jeff tilted his head away from her and continued. "So...?"

"I like you, too."

"I assumed so."

"Arrogant bastard."

"I know." Jeff stood up, cradling the girl in his arms. He set her down on her bed, then returned to the window. "Well, that's all I needed." He said, sliding the window open once more.

"Wait, hold on." She hopped of the bed and grabbed him by the arm. "We haven't even-"

"Haven't _what_?"

"Haven't even _talked_ about this!"

Jeff jerked his arm away and began climbing out the window. "What is there to talk about?"

"Are we like...a _thing _now?"

"If you can keep quiet about it." He said, making his way down the side of the house.

The girl rested her hand on the window sill and watched the man making his way down. Once on the ground, she saw him pull out a pair of sunglasses, put them on, and run off. She reached up and shut the window, stepping away. SHe flung herself on her bed and fixed her eyes on the ceiling. "I think," She began, speaking aloud. "I have a boyfriend now."

* * *

"Where are you going?" The familiar voice rang out behind him. The killer stood with his hand on the door, his brown bag over his shoulder, and his knife in its sheath. He turned around to see his brother standing there, arms crossed over his chest.

"I was...going to Darcy's house." He said quickly, turning around. It wasn't untrue; He _had _planned on stopping by her home later that night.

Liu's expression softened. "May I come?"

"I was planning on making a few stops along the way."

"Where?"

"Just a few houses. Maybe the liquor store." Jeff replied flatly, turning back to open the door and head into the garage. Liu followed, getting into the passenger side door.

"Where are you going that you can't bring your dearest brother?"

Jeff shook his head as he got in the drivers seat, backing out and beginning to drive. "You can come with me wherever, but not to Darcy's."

"Why? I like Darcy. Doesn't she like me?"

"As a friend."

"Well, yeah, but-"

"She's not going to like you beyond that." The killer growled.

Liu sniffed sharply. "You can't possibly know what."

"Stay the hell away from my girlfriend, Liu."

"What?"

"Did I stutter?"

"No, but-"

"Exactly. Just leave her the hell alone."

Liu stared at his brother for a moment, dumbfounded. "Your girlfriend? Since when?"

"This morning." He stated simply, stopping at the end of the street and getting out. "I'll be back. Stay here."

Liu's expression darkened. "You're going to kill someone."

"That's the plan." Jeff muttered before slamming the door. Liu sprang out of the car and circled around the car to stand in Jeff's way.

"No."

"What, are you gonna stop me? You'll end of with a knife in your throat, and you won't survive this time." Jeff pushed past his brother and headed for the house, leaving Liu standing by the car by himself. "I'll be back in a minute." He called flatly over his shoulder. "Stay out of trouble."


End file.
